A look back at Renegades' 2013 season

The Hudson Valley Renegades did not defend their 2012 New York-Penn League title this summer, as the team finished in third place in the McNamara Division and missed the playoffs.

William Montgomery

The Hudson Valley Renegades did not defend their 2012 New York-Penn League title this summer, as the team finished in third place in the McNamara Division and missed the playoffs.

Renegades fans were treated to plenty of great pitching in 2013, but thanks to fewer high-level Tampa Bay Rays prospects on the roster, a handful of mid-season promotions and a lackluster offense, the team wasn't able to bring postseason baseball back to the Hudson Valley.

The team finished the season on a winning note and finished one game over .500 at 38-37, but a brutal 1-13 stretch around the All-Star break in August dashed the Renegades' playoff hopes.

The Times Herald-Record takes a look at the Renegades' performance this season, position-by-position.

Oscar Hernandez, an NY-PL All-Star, played in 43 games in a Renegades uniform before being promoted to Low-A Bowling Green (Ky.). During his time in Hudson Valley, he hit .228 with six doubles, six home runs and 33 RBI. Behind the plate, he made just two errors and threw out 57 percent (16-of-28) would-be base stealers.

Omar Narvaez was Hernandez's backup and took over the starting role following Hernandez's promotion. He hit .267 with 13 RBI in 39 games and threw out 10-of-20 base stealers.

The Renegades didn't get much offensive production from their catchers, but they played stellar defense and meshed well with one of the league's top pitching staffs.

Grade: B

John Alexander, an eighth round pick out of Glendora (Calif.) High School in 2011, struggled in June and July, but he saved his season with a torrid August. Alexander hit .271 seven doubles, one triple and 16 RBI in that month alone, finishing with a .215 average, 13 doubles, 29 RBI. He hit his first and only home run in Hudson Valley's second-to-last game.

Alexander, who turned 20 in April, played well defensively and still has time to develop as a hitter. Perhaps he took his first big step this August.

Grade: C+

Ariel Soriano, who makes a strong case for Renegades' team MVP. did it all with a good bat and solid defense to boot. A NY-PL All-Star game starter at second base, Soriano hit .267 with 12 doubles, five triples, six home runs and 31 RBI. He was second on the team with 18 stolen bases.

Soriano's one hole this season was his eye, as he struck out 50 times and drew just 12 walks in 292 plate appearances. He made eight errors in 56 games at second, for a .972 fielding percentage.

At 23 years old, Soriano isn't exactly on the fast track to the major leagues, but he's certainly earned a promotion to a full-season Single-A team in 2014.

Grade: B+

Pat Blair was the team's first starting shortstop, but a hamstring injury forced him to the bench and opened a door for utilityman Darryl George, the Renegades' other MVP candidate.

Blair hit .168 in 107 at-bats and he made 14 errors in 32 games.

George, who also played some third base, first base and outfield — and even made a pair of pitching appearances — took over at short in midseason and thrived. A native of Melbourne, Australia, George had a .286 batting average and eight doubles, two triples and 18 RBI. He also had the best strikeout-to-walk ratio of any Renegades regular, striking out 40 times against 23 walks in 258 plate appearances.

George, who was an NY-PL All-Star game starter, had a fine season at the plate and played well enough defensively despite never having one position to call his own.

Grade: B

Ty Young helped lead Louisville to the College World Series in June but he had a rough adjustment to the pros when he arrived in Fishkill.

Young finished with a .217 batting average and had 12 doubles, two triples, two home runs and 22 RBI over 58 games. He did lead the team with 24 walks, but he was second with 57 strikeouts.

In the field, Young made 13 errors for a fielding percentage of .910.

Young, 21, might find himself playing the middle infield before long, with former Renegades Evan Longoria and Richie Shaffer ahead of him on Tampa Bay's depth chart at third base.

Grade: C-

Johnny Field, Granden Goetzman, James Harris and Julian Ridings split time in the outfield and often rotated in as the DH as well.

Harris, the 60th overall pick in the 2011 draft, struggled in July, batting .147 over 25 games. He had finished with batting averages below .200 in his first two professional seasons. In August, Harris turned things around to finish the year with a .258 average, 10 doubles, three triples, one home run and 21 RBI. He did lead the team with 68 strikeouts and drew just 17 walks. In 61 games in the outfield, he made seven errors.

Field won a national championship with the University of Arizona in 2012 and was selected in the fifth round of the 2013 draft. He was the team's most consistent outfielder, as he hit .252 with 20 doubles, one triple, two home runs and 24 RBI. He had six outfield assists, made just one error and went 14-for-20 in stolen base attempts. The Rays listed Field as a second baseman when they drafted him this year, so a shift to the middle infield may be in his future.

Ridings had hit 11 home runs this spring at Western Carolina University but didn't leave the park this summer, although he did have 14 doubles and two triples to go along with his .255 average.

Goetzman, a second round pick in 2011, didn't have a breakout year like Harris. After hitting .153 in 21 games with Bowling Green in the spring, Goetzman was demoted. He finished the year with a .220 batting average, 16 extra base hits (8 doubles, six triples and two homers) and drove in 22 runs. Goetzman led the team with 19 stolen bases, but he walked just seven times in 222 plate appearances.

Hudson Valley's outfielders provided plenty of speed on the basepaths, but they struggled so much in reaching base that they had fewer opportunities to steal than they should have. For an outfield that featured three players selected in the fifth round or higher, it was a disappointing year.

Grade: C

Chris Kirsch, started 16 games, the most by a Renegades starter since Alex Cobb, now with Tampa Bay, had started 16 in 2007. A 21-year-old lefty who had pitched at Lackawanna College in Scranton, Pa., before being drafted in 2012, Kirsch was the team's ace. He went 4-3 with a 2.94 ERA striking out 46 and walking 28 over 88﻿ 2/3 innings.

Ben Griset went 3-3 with a 3.41 ERA in 14 starts, walking only 10 batters in 66 innings.

Aaron Griffin, the younger brother of Oakland A's starter A.J. Griffin, went 3-3 with a 2.02 ERA in 17 appearances, 12 of which were starts. Griffin struck out 54 and walked eight over 75﻿2/3 innings.

The trio of Kevin Brandt, Jordan Harrison and Austin Pruitt all pitched well, each having a sub 3.00 ERA before their promotions to Bowling Green.

Jaime Schultz made seven relief appearances to start the season, but made 10 starts since mid-July, averaging just 3﻿1/3 innings per start. He was relieved each time by Colton Reavis. Add their numbers together and the Schultz/Reavis duo combined to go 3-3 with a 2.79 ERA and 62 strikeouts in 611/3 innings. They did throw 32 walks between them, 18 of which belonged to Schultz.

The Renegades' team ERA of 2.92 ranked third in the NY-PL, trailing only State College (2.80) and Brooklyn (2.81). The pitching staff has placed among the top four each season since 2010.

Hudson Valley's starting pitchers kept runners off base, kept the Renegades in the game night after night and they'll only add to Tampa Bay's already rich stock of starting pitching depth.

Grade: A-

When Renegades manager Michael Johns went to the bullpen, he had plenty of strong options from which to choose.

Righthanders Eli Echarry and Cory Jordan, younger brother of NBA star DeAndre Jordan, tied for the team lead with 18 appearances apiece. Echarry had a 2.70 ERA and struck out 44 in 53﻿1/3 innings. Jordan struck out 26 over 27 innings.

Justin Choate, an undrafted free agent, made 16 appearances and led the team with six saves. Rick Teasley, a lefty who also appeared in 16 games, went 3-4 with a 2.77 ERA and struck out 34 over 39 innings.

Derek Loera did start four games, but came out of the bullpen 10 times, striking out 36 and walking four in 44 total innings pitched.

Andrew Hanse was promoted to Bowling Green after appearing in 12 games and allowing 11 earned runs in 21 innings.

Anthony Tzamtzis was really the only Renegades reliever to struggle. He went 1-1 and had a 4.34 ERA in 12 appearances and walked 13 and hit three batters in 18﻿ 2/3 innings.

Grade: B+

Jonathan Quinonez, Ryan McChesney, Julian Morillo and Ben Kline all played limited roles on the team this season.

Quinonez hit .337 and had 13 doubles over 25 games - and played five different positions - before being promoted to High-A Port Charlotte (Fla.).

Hudson Valley's pitching and base running were the team strengths in 2013. The Renegades stole 121 bases in 167 attempts, a success rate of 72.4 percent.

The problems were the bats and the defense. Hudson Valley scored 296 runs, a drop off from the 347 runs they scored during 2012's championship season. In the field, Renegades players made 113 errors and Renegades pitchers allowed 76 unearned runs.

Final grade: B-

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